This is the first sentence I wrote this week. I wrote this on a Thursday. Like many people, I now find work harder, and even basic daily tasks feel heavier than usual. If this sounds familiar, you are not alone. The mental health of everyone has taken a toll, and there is information to prove it.
Although there has been sufficient discussion of the economic consequences of a global pandemic, it is more difficult to quantify the toll of our collective mental health. It is almost impossible to stay home for months on end, cancel opportunities for years and even disrupt basic routines, such as how we buy groceries without having a significant impact on our mental health. And yet it can feel as if the impact of these changes is ‘just tension’, and is seen as something to drive.
However, according to data from Mental Health America (MHA), more people are faced with deteriorating mental health. From January to September 2020, the number of people doing MHA anxiety tests increased by 93 percent during the entire previous year. The organization’s depression survey saw a 62 percent increase over the 2019 total. Before the year was over, more people were trying to figure out if they were suffering from anxiety or depression than ever before.
MHA is not the only organization with data pointing to the impact on the mental health of the pandemic. A survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation in July 2020 found that 53 percent of adults said that mental health negatively affects the pandemic. Data collected from the CDC found that 41 percent of adults experienced symptoms of an anxiety or depression disorder in December 2020, compared to 11 percent in January-July of 2019.
That is, it is not just you. Mental health problems are a natural response to an ongoing traumatic event such as a pandemic.
Why a Pandemic Increases Mental Health Problems
The pandemic has disrupted most aspects of our lives, but the extra isolation of quarantines, social distance, and canceled events is one of the biggest tolls on our collective mental health. It’s not just that we miss our friends and family. The social ties we have form support systems and safety nets. If those disappear or decrease, it can lead to an increase in anxiety or depression symptoms.
MBA’s Vice President for Mental Health and Advocacy for Systems, Debbie Plotnick, explained that one of the ways it can manifest – especially in young people – is self-harm. “In November, 53 percent of 11- to 17-year-olds reported – more than half of them – that they regularly thought about suicide or self-harm.”
One of the main reasons, not only for self-harm thoughts among young people, but for the mental health problems in people of all ages, is the distance we had between each other. ‘We asked [the people who take MHA surveys] what bothers them – and remember, they are not all young – and they tell us that it is loneliness and isolation. ‘
Isolation may not seem as severe as some of the other stressors that a pandemic can bring – a loss of revenue, political unrest and disrupted schedules – but it’s crucial. We need other people, and while digital connections like Zoom meetings or Discord parties are a great addition, it’s hard to stay away from the people we’re interested in for so long.
And then there is the practical impact. According to a survey by the Pew Research Center, a quarter of U.S. adults said they have had trouble paying their bills since the start of the pandemic. However, the number rises to 46 percent among lower-income households. “For people who have jobs, they are very grateful,” Plotnick explained. “It’s troublesome for people who lose their jobs.”